From Now On…

If you’re anything like me, you’re probably obsessed with all things The Greatest Showman. I could talk for hours about how much I love everything about this movie- from the music, the choreography, the casting, the costuming, everything.

Despite that wee fan-girl moment you just witnessed, this blog post is not a movie review. It is, however, inspired by the movie.

If you’ve seen the film or listened to the soundtrack, you know that it’s almost possible to pick a favorite song as they are all so beautiful lyrically, but one that’s really inspired me lately is the powerful ballad at the climax of the movie- “From Now On.” From Now On is the the song PT Barnum (Hugh Jackman) sings with the circus cast after an unfortunate event, when he realizes he hadn’t been acting like himself due to chasing the fame and glamor of the world. He decides that he is no longer going to focus on the things that don’t matter, but instead shift his attention to the things that do.

What does this mean to me? Well, let’s take a look at some of the chorus’ lyrics really quick:

And from now on, these eyes will not be blinded by the lights.

From now on, what’s waited till tomorrow starts tonight.

It starts tonight.”

As a Christian college student in 2018, these lyrics pierced into me.

“…these eyes will not be blinded by the lights..” In this age of social media and television, it’s so easy to become distracted by, even obsessed with popularity. By how many followers we have on our social networks, by how many people we know, by the idea of having people know your name, or having some type of fame. We often end up, in a sense, “blinded by the lights.”

As a Christian, I recognize that this is something to be wary of- we are warned against this kind of idolatry of worldly things, or the desire to be of the world. Romans 12:2 says, “Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is- his good, pleasing and perfect will.” The apostle Paul wrote this because it was relevant to the people culture in Rome thousands of years ago, but it’s still very relevant today.

If we are so focused on fulfilling the glamorous, glittery expectations of the world in order to “fit in” or be seen as “like-able,” we are not paying attention to God’s beautiful and perfect will, his plan for our lives. By doing this, we’re sending ourselves down a road of destruction. We lose the very depths of who we are by not utilizing our spiritual gifts and opportunities- just like PT Barnum lost who he was in the film. In The Greatest Showman, we see Barnum get caught up in fame, esteem and wealth- so much so that he neglects his circus family and brushes off his wife and children in order to pursue more wealth and fame.

As viewers, we may think “Seriously, P.T.? You have so much greatness happening right in front of you- why would you run off?” But we know deep inside that we do the same thing all the time. We don’t appreciate what we have in the pursuit of something we perceive as better, even if it ends up hurting us or leaving us dissatisfied. If we turn our focus back on to what we have, from now on, back to God and his plan for us, we will be more satisfied. That satisfaction may not come during our time on Earth, but it surely will once we’re in Heaven with our creator, living in eternal satisfaction.

Another struggle we face is procrastination. We wait to do things, and I’m not just talking about homework! When faced with the opportunity to pray out loud, share our testimonies or tell someone about God, we often think “eh, I’ll do it next time/week/month/year.” This response becomes repetitive & we continue on this trail of putting things off that could’ve planted seeds. We keep neglecting our garden that’s right in front of us. God knows when we recognize an opportunity he’s called us to & neglect to take advantage of it. I can name numerous times I had the opportunity to share the gospel or show God’s love to people where I didn’t, and I feel upset about it.

Those days of waiting are over, my friends. I challenge y’all to join me in prayer and challenging yourself to use the opportunities before you. Seize the moment, share the love & work together with other believers to spread the word of God to everyone who hasn’t felt it. Stop procrastinating life, stop procrastinating sharing the Gospel & stop procrastinating everything because the time is now. As the Greatest Showman said, “what’s waited for tomorrow starts tonight!”

God Bless,

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Published by Cassie Allred

Hey y'all, I'm Cassie and I love talking about Jesus, drinking coffee, traveling the world & dancing. Striving towards earning a BS in nursing. Let me know how I can pray for you! :)
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2 thoughts on “From Now On…”

What a great post. The connections you made were spot on, not to mention that I too am obsessed with The Greatest Showman 😀
God has been teaching me a lot about trusting him for strength to STOP PROCRASTINATING 😀 It’s a process, but I trust in His strength. Great post! Can’t wait to see more.

Thank you so much!! Such a great movie and a lot of its messages remind me of Biblical ideas as well! I think I may do a mini series on connections I’ve made between the movie & the Biblical virtues they remind me of. Thanks for reading, glad you enjoyed it! 🙂